The government’s Economic Reform Roundtable is getting down to business in the Cabinet room of Parliament House. Photo: Michelle Kroll.
AI and EV were early out of the starting blocks on the first day of the Federal Government’s productivity roundtable held in the Cabinet room of Parliament House.
How to take advantage of opportunities presented by artificial intelligence and how to get electric vehicle drivers to pay their fair share for road upgrades featured prominently in discussions during Tuesday’s (19 August) start to the three-day summit.
Anthony Albanese and Jim Chalmers have both made it clear that an EV levy is firmly under consideration, but the enthusiasm for it from the Prime Minister and Federal Treasurer was perhaps shadowed by that of NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey.
The NSW Treasurer wants a national EV road user levy, saying his state is pushing ahead with one of its own.
“I think it’s fair and reasonable that everybody who uses our roads should be making a contribution,” he told the ABC during a break in the morning’s proceedings.
“As to whether or not you start with heavy vehicles or light vehicles, we’ll listen to the perspectives of people in the room.”
Mr Albanese set the scene for the three-day gathering, welcoming attendees and expressing the enormity of stakeholder interest in participating in the event.
“There’s an appetite for ideas and we all know here in this room that the job of reform is never done,” he said.
“So, this is an opportunity over the next three days to have your input, have your dialogue with each other as well, as well as with the government … The other thing that I hope defines our government is a newfound respect for the public service, and that we actually want to encourage ideas to come forward.”
Mr Albanese raised AI from the outset, suggesting it presented both opportunities and challenges, but was still a large unknown when it comes to improving productivity.
“We have the biggest revolution since the industrial revolution with clean energy. We have a revolution that is less certain as well, artificial intelligence and new technology,” he said.
“The impact of that on the nature of work, on the economy and the way that we function as a society as well.”
The PM said some ideas agreed on by the forum could be implemented straight away, while others might feed into the budget update at the end of this calendar year, and more could form part of the next federal budget.
After setting the scene for the three days, the Prime Minister handed the reins to the Treasurer as facilitator in chief.
He also expressed his satisfaction with the level of interest the roundtable had garnered.
“The appetite and ambition have been really encouraging. Again, I couldn’t be more grateful for that, because it’s helped put us in a good position for the coming days,” Dr Chalmers said.
The roundtable comprises 23 core attendees and 25 session-specific attendees from business, government, economics and academia, the union movement and civil society.
Following the opening remarks, the media were sent packing and left to rely on informal updates from some attendees during the breaks.
Reserve Bank Governor Michele Bullock delivered an overview of economic opportunities for Australia and the need for resilience in the face of approaching challenges.
Streamlining skills recognition also featured prominently in early discussions, with agreement around the table that current regulations are counterproductive and far too cumbersome.
The Treasurer has promised a detailed review of the meeting and its resolutions after the forum concludes on Thursday.
Deputy Opposition Leader Ted O’Brien, a roundtable participant, said the government has set itself a test by which the nation will judge it.
“Jim Chalmers has taken three years to acknowledge that living standards are collapsing in Australia, and then another three months to organise a three-day meeting to talk about it,” Mr O’Brien said.
“He has set himself the biggest test since he has entered parliament. He has made it very clear to the Australian people that he will turn the stats around on living standards … Over the next three days, I will be representing the 27 million Australians who are outside of that room.
“Over the last three months, Jim Chalmers has raised expectations. He has set a test for himself. Jim Chalmers came out of the blocks very quickly. So too did the Prime Minister, making speeches saying that this is the moment that they are going to turn Australia around.
“So based on their own test, their own criteria, the Australian people expect these three days to be delivering enormous outcomes. I look forward to seeing what the Treasurer has in mind.”
